There are many ways to know you are a pianist: you catch yourself drumming your fingers in a scale on the dinner table, you hear songs you have learned on the radio, and your fingers are nimbler than all the rest of your body. Your fingernails are always short. You can read both treble and bass clefs, and you know how to pronounce “Chopin” correctly. When someone mentions keys, you think not of a lock, but of those black and white things on a piano. More importantly, you can sit down at the piano and lose track of time. You turn to music when you feel upset, sad, or just bored. You have learned to conquer your nerves and perform in front of dozens of people at a recital. You understand first-hand the meaning of the phrase “practice makes perfect.”

These are just some of the reasons why I love playing the piano. After 13 years of experience, the piano continues to be a fun hobby, an exciting challenge, and an outlet for my emotions. There is something magical about being able to transform clusters of black notes on a page into beautiful melodies, and I hope to keep playing piano in college and beyond. I thank my parents for attending all of my recitals and supporting me every step of the way. I also thank my brother for playing so many fun duets with me over the years. Finally, I am very grateful to have found Juliana—we are all so lucky to have her as our piano teacher. I appreciate all of the hard work she puts in to teaching and learning hundreds of pages of music to play concertos and duets with her students. Her kindness, flexibility, and dedication are unparalleled.

I especially enjoy the piano because it is so versatile. Not only is there a wide variety of music to learn—classical, baroque, romantic, contemporary, and more—but a pianist can also play solos, duets, concertos, or accompaniments. I encourage you to try all that piano has to offer. Go beyond the realm of Mozart or Beethoven and play piano for your school’s jazz band, accompany a friend who plays a different instrument, or learn a piece by a new composer. You will undoubtedly find new reasons to love the instrument and appreciate the fact that you are a pianist.